Alma Ch47

As the Nephites were prospering, Amalickiah was working his way to become king of the Lamanites using treachery, murder, and intrigue. Him and his dissenters from the Nephites are worse than any Lamanite because they are in rebellion against God.
Amalickiah and the group that escaped with him went to stir up the Lamanites and the king proclaimed they were going to attack but most the people didn't want to because they knew how awfully they were just beaten by the Nephites (v1-2). The king gave Amalickiah the command of those who wanted to fight to go to convince the rest to fight as Amalickiah planned the kings death (v3-4). Amalickiah followed the unwilling Lamanites with his army to Onidah where they had fled when they saw the army and separated themselves from the Lamanites with a new leader, Lehonti, and resolution to not be subjected to fight (v5-6).
They settled themselves in a place where they could easily defend against their brethren which was on a hill named Antipas, but Amalickiah didn't plan to attack and risk killing many Lamanites so he set up camp  around the hill (v7-9). During the night, a secret embassy went to Lehonti and asked him to come down to speak with Amalickiah but Lehonti refused all three times someone was sent to ask, so Amalickiah went half way up the mountain and asked a 4th time to come with guards for protection and speak with him (v10-12). This time Lehonti went and they planned to join both armies by having Lehonti's army come by night to surround Amalickiah's army and as this happened, they pleaded to join Lehonti who then made Amalickiah second in command...exactly what he wanted in his own plan to become king (v13-16).
There are never elections in the Lamanites for leaders, it just happens that the second in command takes over whenever the first dies, and coincidentally Amalickiah is second in command when Lehonti dies from poison by degrees (v17-19). Now he had accomplished what the king wanted so he gained favor with him while at the same time, in the eyes of the people, he was their rightful military commander as they marched back to the city of Nephi to see the king (v20-21). Instead of meeting the king face to face, Amalickiah sent his servants to meet him and they bowed in 'reverence of his greatness' but as they were signaled to rise as a sign of peace from the king, they stabbed him in his heart and he died (v22-24)!
The kinds servants run back in fear for their lives but are accused of the act themselves and are chased by the army of Amalickiah for revenge for killing the king into the wilderness to eventually join the peaceful people of Ammon (v25-29). Through this whole thing, Amalickiah had gained favor of the people and when he told the queen his lies with the servants that did the murder, and she believed him then married him (v30-35)! So now he is king over all the Lamanites which include Lemuelites, Ishmaelites and the dissenters of Nephites who were raised with the truths of the gospel but rejected them and became hardened and wildly wicked entirely forgetting their God (v36).